Flying Buzzard -- Historic Tug

Flying Buzzard is a 105ft ocean-going ex-steam tug. She was built on the Clyde in 1951 by Ferguson Brothers of Port Glasgow and was one of the last rivetted steam ships to be commissioned. She arrived in Cumbria, North West England, in 1983 and was part of the Maryport Steamship Museum for 20 years.

In 1998 she was registered as an historic vessel by the National Historic Ships Committee and became a member of the Historic Fleet of the United Kingdom.

The Buzzard fell into a state of disrepair that resulted in the removal of her boilers, and ending of her steam career in 2002. In 2004 Mike Nelder and Cambridge PhD Julie Jessop bought the Flying Buzzard when she lay neglected in Maryport harbour after failed attempts to preserve her.

For four and a half years they worked tirelessly, with the help of friends, and overcoming many difficulties, to refit the vessel -- including extensive rebuilding of the interior. The initial plan was take her across the Atlantic, through the Caribbean and Panamar Canal and up to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Although no longer running on steam, every effort has been made to renovate the Buzzard in a manner befitting her original glory.

They left Maryport in December 2008, visiting Spain, Maderia, the Canaries and the Cape Verdes before crossing the Atlantic and arriving in Trinidad in April 2009. Since then they have spend time in Venezuela and visited many of Caribbean islands.